Posts tagged: Cooperative Extension System

A member of the Geronimo Interagency Hotshot Crew, Department of the Interior (DOI) Indian Affairs (IA) Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) San Carlos Agency in Arizona; on assignment. The combined effects of droughts and insects may lead to a pulse of tree mortality that increases the potential for intense fires. USDA Photo by Lance Cheung.

The climate statistics for the first month of 2014 have been impressive. Extreme weather has lashed the United States from Alaska to Florida with record warmth, cold, dry and wet conditions all at the same time. The National Climatic Data Center reports that January of 2014 was the driest January on record for New Mexico, 2nd driest for Arizona and 3rd driest for California. January 2014 was also in the top ten of coldest Januaries on record for much of the upper Midwest.

Extreme drought conditions in the western U.S. are dramatically impacting water supplies critical to agriculture and elevating fire risk across our National Forests. Across the continent frequent cold waves have repeatedly threatened winter crops across the Southeast while frost depths reaching several feet will impact springtime planting across the Midwest. This kind of winter gets everyone talking about the weather. It brings to mind the quote “Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it,” often attributed to Mark Twain (but apparently said by a friend). Read more »

If you are a 4-H’er, a farmer or backyard gardener who works with your local Extension agent, or a part of a Land Grant University – tell us how Extension has helped, improved or even changed your life using #Ext100Years!

One hundred years ago, Congress passed the Smith-Lever Act, expanding on the federal government’s partnership with the Land-Grant University System to create the Cooperative Extension System. This is 100 years of Extension making a positive impact in the lives of Americans.

Today, USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) partners with more than 100 land-grant universities in pursuit of openness, accessibility and service through Cooperative Extension. NIFA’s support of Extension allows these universities to take their science and knowledge to the local level – to the farmers, ranchers, families and consumers who need it most. Read more »

All universities engage in research and teaching, but the nation’s more than 100 land-grant colleges and universities, have a third critical mission—extension. “Extension” means “reaching out,” and—along with teaching and research—land-grant institutions extend their resources, solving public needs with college or university resources through non-formal, non-credit programs.

These programs are largely administered through thousands of county and regional extension offices, which bring land-grant expertise to the most local of levels. And both the universities and their local offices are supported by NIFA, the federal partner in the Cooperative Extension System (CES). Read more »

Hundreds of thousands of youth throughout the country are gathering today to celebrate 4-H National Youth Science Day by simultaneously conducting the National Science Experiment.

For the third year in a row, hundreds of thousands of youth throughout the country are gathering today to celebrate 4-H National Youth Science Day (NYSD) by simultaneously conducting theNational Science Experiment. Read more »